Manolo says, it is Monday and you are back at your desk, regretting that you agreed to go to lunch with your office mate Nina.

The problem with the Nina, and what makes her your mortal frenemy, is not that she is the bad person, but rather that she is both the devoted long-distance runner and the vegan, things about which she never stops talking.

What this means in the practical terms is that your lunch will begin with the self-righteous commentary on the menu choices at the TGI Fridays, followed shortly by the lengthy negotiations with the waitress over the order.

“Can you keep the Parmesan cheese out of the Caesar Salad? Wait, do you use real anchovies? You do? Then, can I have the Santa Fe Chicken Salad without the chicken, and hold the cheese on that? Also, can you give me extra black beans on that… wait, does that chipolte dressing have cream in it?”

After the food is ordered (and your waitress has silently resolved to spit in Nina’s iced tea) you will be treated to the blow-by-the-blow description of how Nina began the morning at 5:30AM with the eight mile run, which is part of her training regime for the series of ultra marathons. Afterwards, Nina will treat you to the brief disquisition on the topic “Sugar Equals Murder”.

Ugh. Just thinking about what awaits you at the lunch time makes you depressed.

Manolo says, trust the Manolo, you will eventually need something like this nude, strappy number from the Loeffler Randall, which thanks to your foresight, you may purchase today at 70% off of the regular price!.

Manolo says, you love it that your mother named you after one of the Disney princesses, well not really a princess, but a mermaid who becomes a princess, which is way more cooler, because it’s a like a transformation, and transformations are good, right? Unless you become a werewolf, like Jacob, then that would be bad, because you’re totally Team Edward.

Do you want to hear like the funniest thing, ever?

Your best friend from grade school was this Hispanic girl named Belle, which was totally hilarious because it’s from Beauty and the Beast. You were like the two Disney princesses in together in one class.

But then when you got into seventh grade, and you sort of drifted apart, kinda like how that happens all the time. And when Belle invited you to her quinceañera, you didn’t go, because you really didn’t know anyone there, except these two Mexican girls who were in you homeroom class, and this boy, Arturo, whose locker was next to yours.

Speaking of transformation, you just landed this really great job down at the Aéropostale at the Plaza. The pay is not the greatest, but you totally get a discount on everything in the store, and the manager says they’ll work around your class schedule at Citrus when you start there in the fall. (You’re not looking forward to that, but Mom says you have to, that you can’t go through life with just a high school diploma, because you won’t get anywhere with that.)

Transformation, right? Mom’s big on transformation.

P.S. Many thanks to the Manolo’s internet friend Amber for suggesting this shoe for the Shoe Personalities.

Gaah, the summer is already half over and I need a pair of flat sandals for the home stretch, something not too expensive, because in a few weeks I’ll have to be back in real shoes. Suggest something cool.

Meredith

Manolo says, ayyy! Old time is still a-flying, and that same summer that smiles today, tomorrow will be dying!

One minute (60 second ago) we were complaining about how super-oppressive-humid-nasty hot it was, and the next we are planning for the imminent end of the summer season and our return to the cooler weather, and shorter days of the fall. As the Manolo always counsels, if you do not like weather today, wait several months and it will be different (unless you live in the Hawaii, in which case, carry on.)

In the meantime, while we wait for the end of the Summer-mageddon 2012, featuring the unexpected delights of “The Derecho”, we will require sandals in which to walk around in, so that our toes may frolic in the open air, as they did in the Garden of Eden. (Yes, it is true, the saddest day of all, was when the teeny Maniolo learned that angels wear no shoes; they do not need them, floating about barefeeted, exactly as Adam and Eve were before they ate the apple. To which the little Manolo could only say, hooray for sin!)

Here is the Gracie from the Sam Edelman, the reasonably priced, fun sandal that will look good on your feets, and not leave you bankrupted and living under the bridge in Bethesda. The Manolo is partial to the nude leopard finish, but the shoe is also available in seven other colors, one of which will suit your fickle fancy.

Manolo says, this smashingly sophisticated, summer 2012, thong sandal from the Lanvin is now on the sale, selling for nearly 60% off of the regular price! Still costly, but the bargain for something so handsome.

Give us Fridays and Saturdays and Sundays, and the occasional Thursdays. Wednesdays, if you must. But, emphatically, no Mondays! (As for Tuesdays, we are somewhat agnostic.)

Nothing good happens on those Mondays when you have to go back to work. Yes, you make like your job, or find it not intolerable, but even in such cases is still the great imposition to have to cease the pleasurable activities of the weekend and begin the less-than-pleasurable activities of the work week.

Less reclining in the hammock in the back yard, the copy of the pirate-based romance in hand, and more sitting at your cubicle working on things romantic pirates would have regarded as inessential to the daily romance of piracy.

Well, at the least, you can pirate the little bit of time from your villainous employer by looking at the shoes on the internet…

Manolo says, it is no secret that the Manolo is the fan of the comfort and practical stylishness of the Cole Haan Air line of shoes and sandals. And so when he saw that this flat, summery sandal, the Air Tali JWL Thong was on the sale, he had to absolutely recommend it to his many internet friends.

On the sale? Yes. Available in the black, white gold, and the Manolo’s favorite, the gunsmoke metallic, it is 65% off of the usual price! The deal almost too good to pass up.

Manolo says, here is something for the day after the day of the fireworks, the WE2003 from Giuseppe Zanotti, the strappy high-heeled sandal that speaks in sophisticated tones of muted (for Zanotti) joy.

There is something about this shoe that draws the Manolo, something which the Manolo cannot fully articulate. Certainly, it is the combination of everything, from the toering, to the gold accents, to the snakeskin print. There is the harmonious interplay of elements… Bah! Enough with the talking, talking, talking!

It is the object of attraction and desire. What more needs to be said?

"The King of the Fashion Blogosphere" ~ Linda Grant

Disclaimer: Manolo the Shoeblogger is not Mr. Manolo Blahnik. This website is not affiliated in any way with Mr. Manolo Blahnik, any products bearing the federally registered trademarks MANOlO®, BlAHNIK® or MANOlO BlAHNIK®, or any licensee of said federally registered trademarks. The views expressed on this website are solely those of the author.